Strawberries of the Festival Chamomile variety - an unforgettable taste of childhood

Festival chamomile is a non-repairing variety of garden strawberry. The variety was developed in Ukraine in the late 1980s. The following strawberry varieties took part in the breeding work:

1. Redcoat.
2. Dawn.

In 1992, the variety was included in the State Register of Ukraine; the variety is not listed in the State Register of the Russian Federation.

In Russia, Festival chamomile is recommended to be grown in the following regions of the country:

1. Central.
2. East Siberian.
3. West Siberian.
4. Uralsk.

In this article you will learn a description of the variety, read reviews from gardeners about the Ukrainian beauty, and also see photos of its berries.

Characteristics of the variety

Strawberry Festival Chamomile is a medium variety. Despite the fact that the variety was bred quite a long time ago, it is still very popular among gardeners.

Here are the main characteristics of the Ukrainian variety of garden strawberries:

1. The plant is compact, semi-spreading. The bush is quite tall in height. The leaves are medium sized, pale green in color. There are wrinkles on the surface of the leaf plates, but they are not very pronounced.
2. Educational ability is at its best. The bushes form a fairly large number of tendrils of a reddish-green hue. Due to the abundant number of whiskers, caring for the crop becomes somewhat more complicated. Although, for those who grow strawberries to sell seedlings, a large number of mustaches will only be a plus.
3. The bush forms a fairly large number of flower stalks. The flowers are bisexual and self-pollinating, so there is no need to plant an additional pollinator. The flower stalks are quite powerful and hold even ripe berries well. They are located at the level of the leaves or slightly below.
4. In the southern regions of our country, you can start harvesting from the 2nd half of June. Those who grow this variety in the northern regions of our country can taste the first harvest at the beginning of July. The fruiting of Ukrainian strawberries itself lasts until the onset of frost.
5. The berry is quite large, about 45 grams. This is at the 1st harvest. As with many varieties of garden strawberries, this is characterized by a significant reduction in berry size by the end of the growing season.
6. The berries are not ideally shaped, slightly flattened on the sides.
7. The fruits are bright red. The surface of the berry is glossy. The pulp of the fruit is the same color as its shell. The fruits are juicy, sweet and sour. The structure of strawberries is dense, which is a huge advantage for strawberry producers, since they can be harvested mechanically and transported over long distances (they do not squash or leak).
8. The purpose is universal. It can be frozen, dried, processed (prepared jam, jam, compote).
9. Strawberries of this variety are characterized by high yields. From 1 bush of Festival chamomile, up to 500 g of marketable products are collected.
10. Strawberries are drought-resistant and frost-resistant varieties. It can be grown even in the northern regions of our country.
11. Thanks to its strong immunity, the plant is resistant to a number of diseases.

The best place to plant strawberries

Festival chamomile strawberries thrive in fertile loam with a neutral acidity level. Clay and sandy soil is not recommended.

The variety loves sunny, draft-free areas. Lowlands where water accumulates and shaded areas cause fungal diseases and root rot.

Undesirable predecessors and neighbors:

• cucumbers;
• raspberries;
• tomatoes;
• potato.

According to reviews from amateur gardeners, “ festival chamomile ” bears fruit well after carrots, onions, garlic, legumes and corn. To protect against diseases and pests, you should grow onions, garlic, calendula, and marigolds next to strawberries.

Positive and negative qualities of strawberry Festival chamomile

The variety has simply a huge number of advantages, thanks to which it is still very popular among gardeners. The main advantages of Festival Chamomile include:

1. The variety has excellent frost resistance.
2. Strawberries are quite easy to care for.
3. The fruits ripen very early.
4. The variety is quite high-yielding. From 1 bush, under good care conditions, you can collect up to 500 grams of berries.
5. Due to the fact that the bush forms a large number of tendrils, the variety is very easy to propagate.
6. The fruits are very tasty, sweet, aromatic.
7. The berries are dense, which allows them to be collected mechanically. Also, the berries are not afraid of transportation. They don't flow or wrinkle.
8. The variety has a fairly strong immunity that protects the crop from various fungal diseases.

At the same time, we should not forget that, like any other garden strawberry, Festival chamomile has its drawbacks. The main disadvantages of this variety include:

1. Despite the fairly strong immunity, the variety is still susceptible to diseases such as powdery mildew.
2. As for parasites, Festival chamomile is often affected by the strawberry mite.

Productivity

The yield of Festival chamomile is largely determined by climatic conditions and proper cultivation techniques. This can be attributed to the disadvantages of the variety, but it is very relative, since this is typical for the vast majority of strawberry varieties.

From one bush per season you can collect from 400 to 650 g of berries. Festival chamomile berries store well and withstand long-term transportation well - experts rate this indicator at 4.7 points on a 5-point scale.

This circumstance, as well as thick, erect peduncles that facilitate harvesting, decent size berries, high yield and good taste make Festival chamomile attractive for growing not only in private gardens, but also on industrial plantations.

How to grow and care for garden strawberries

Care is the most important procedure on which the future harvest of a crop depends. However, do not forget about the correct planting of strawberries. Festival chamomile is planted in the following ways:

1. One-liner. With this method, the distance between the bushes is kept at 15-25 cm, and the distance between the rows is about 60-80 cm.
2. Two-line. With this method, the distance between plants is increased to 20-40 cm, and the rows are made double-line. That is, two rows with a distance of 20-40 cm, then a row with a distance of 60-80 cm, then again 2 rows with a distance of 20-40 cm.

Garden strawberries are planted in spring or autumn (late summer). It is advisable to plant in late summer (August), since under such conditions it will be possible to get a harvest next year.

Strawberries are planted according to the following scheme:

1. Prepare the wells. They are pulled out depending on the depth of the root system.
2. After the holes are ready, they are watered generously with water, approximately 1 liter per hole.
3. When the water is absorbed, you can place the seedling in the hole. It must be placed strictly vertically.
4. When the seedling is in the hole, it is sprinkled with soil and compacted.
5. At the end of the work, each bush is watered with water, approximately 1 liter per plant.

After planting, it is necessary to care for the strawberries. First of all, it needs to be watered regularly. Water strawberries in the evening or early morning, when the sun is in an inactive phase and will not burn the leaves of the crop. As a standard, strawberries are watered once a week. During hot weather, the number of waterings is increased to 2-3 per week.

We also recommend reading: Description of the Syrian strawberry variety

The second no less important agrotechnical procedure is the fertilization of strawberries. Fertilize it 3 times per season:

1. The first time is in early spring, in order to awaken the plant from sleep. Nitrogen-containing fertilizers are ideal as spring feeding.
2. The second time strawberries are fertilized after the ovaries have formed. In this case, phosphorus-potassium fertilizers are used.
3. The last time strawberries are fertilized with organic matter is to prepare them for wintering.

Reproduction

Plantings are rejuvenated after 3-4 years of fruiting. It is advisable to propagate the variety by means of a mustache and dividing the bush.

To ensure that the rosettes on the tendrils take root well and are strong, the flower stalks on the mother plants are cut off. When dividing the bush, you need to make sure that each part has at least 2 leaves and a good root system.

Pests and diseases

As noted earlier, the variety has fairly strong immunity. However, if the crop is not properly cared for, it can still encounter a number of problems. The main problems that the Festival chamomile may encounter include:

1. Spider mite. This parasite infects the leaves, sucking the juice from them. As a result of the pest's activity, the leaf blade becomes yellow and covered with a thin cobweb. The fruits ripen small and deformed. If the plantings are severely affected by this pest, then only pesticides will help. For minor lesions, they resort to folk remedies: garlic infusion, onion peel infusion, etc.
2. Nematode. This is a small pest that affects the entire plant. If a pest has infected a bush, it must be quickly removed from the area so that the parasite does not infest healthy bushes.
3. Powdery mildew. The main problem facing the Festival Daisy. With this disease, you can observe the appearance of a white coating on the leaf blades. To prevent this disease, you can treat the bushes with soda solution in early spring.
4. Verticillium wilt. With this disease, dark spots can be seen on the surface of the leaf. If no measures are taken, the leaves will soon begin to die, the bush will become weak, lethargic and eventually die too. To prevent the plant from infecting healthy bushes, it must be removed from the site and burned.

Reviews from gardeners

Natalya Vladimirovna, Moscow, 54 years old.

An excellent variety. This year I took good care of the strawberries, watered them, fertilized them, and sprayed them against parasites. From my 4 orphans I collected almost a bucket of strawberries. I'm shocked. Festival chamomile is absolutely gorgeous.

Vladimir Igorevich, Kyiv, 42 years old.

I really liked the variety. The berries are tasty and juicy. We grow purely for ourselves. The wife and children are happy. During the entire time of growing this variety, which is approximately 10-12 years, the variety has never encountered serious diseases. For now, the main strawberries are not going to change.

Features of fruiting

The variety is classified as mid-season, although under optimal weather conditions the ripening time of the berries may move closer to mid-early. The fruits begin to ripen in the second decade of June.

The variety is distinguished by the friendly ripening of berries: no more than 15 days pass from the beginning to the end of fruiting.

In the first harvest, the berries are large, weighing 35-45 g; in subsequent harvests, the berries become much smaller, and at the end of fruiting their weight rarely exceeds 15 g. The average weight of berries during the main harvest is 12-15 g, during the last harvest — 8-10 g.

It is best to grow in a 4-year cycle, renewing the planting site every 4 years. Moreover, this renewal is associated not so much with the degeneration of the variety, but with the accumulation of various pathogens and strawberry pests in the soil.